Whether served as a starter or a main dish, soup has always been one of the nation’s most loved dishes and a firm favourite on every menu. With the cold weather still in abundance, January is the ideal month to celebrate #NationalSoupMonth and enjoy all kinds of soup in a variety of way.

From a creamy chowder to light broths, we think there is a soup to suit all of your customers’ tastes this month.

Lunch on the go

Butternut squash has always been a popular flavour. Known for its nutty yet sweet flavour, it’s hard to resist a warming bowl of this soup. Why not add a warming touch to your takeaway lunch menu by adding a cup of soup to your meal deal? Served alongside a panini or fresh sandwich this is sure to warm your customers up.

Take yours to the next level and surprise your customers by adding in some smoked paprika to add a gentle warmth and subtle spice to your soup. Topped off with thin slices of salty streaky bacon and your customers will not be able to resist.

Ploughmans platter

Why not try adding some small cups of French onion soup to your ploughman’s platter? The deep savoury taste of the caramelised onions and glutinous cheese crouton is the ultimate indulgence and perfect finishing touch to accompany your cheese, meats and pie selection.

Simple to make, the key is to make sure you caramelise your onions to make them as tender as possible, sprinkling them with sugar half way through the process, before simmering in hot stock and dry white wine. We’ve made things even easier as we stock ready-to-use diced onion, to save you on preparation time. Topped with a crouton and melted cheese this soup is a real delicacy.

Afternoon tea

Another fantastic way to introduce soup into your menu is serving it on the savoury section of your afternoon tea menus. A small tea cup of hot soup will be a very welcome addition on these cold winter days.

Full on flavour, why not add a simple seafood chowder to your menu this January? A chunky, creamy soup with salmon, smoked haddock and mixed shellfish and diced potatoes is sure to be a sell out during #NationalSoupMonth. This seafood special would also pair well with some delicate prawn marie rose finger sandwiches.

Added extras

Remember soup doesn’t have to be boring, so add some texture and crunch to your next soup. Homemade croutons always go down well, are simple to make and are also a great way to recycle your stale bread. For that extra crunch, add crumbled streaky bacon to your soup – the salty flavour is sure to add a surprising punch to your soup.

How about serving your soup in an edible bowl? For your adult customers, they’ll enjoy tearing the bowl apart and dunking as they go, and for your littler customers you could liven things up by creating fun shaped bowls. Why not try making a spider shaped bowl, where they can use the legs as dunkers!

Let us know on Twitter what soups you’re adding to your menu this month to celebrate!